In the trucking industry, concentrate containers have been used for many years. Typically, the containers are transported by way of flat bed trailers. The containers are generally filled at the location of the mine where the concentrate is obtained. Thereafter, they are transported to a smelter or warehouse where the containers are removed from the flat bed trailers by fork lift trucks and the containers are dumped. The containers are then returned to the mine where they are again loaded with concentrate.
Concentrate containers presently used, commonly called concentrate pots, are steel and have a round or circular configuration. Such containers, however, have several disadvantages.
First, the containers are heavy because they are steel or stainless steel. This reduces the payload that can be carried by the trailer because of loading restrictions on the highway and the like. Second, such containers have a relatively high centre of gravity because they are circular. This make transportation less safe than would be the case if the centre of gravity of the container were lower. Third, such containers have a relatively high wind resistance on the trailer because of their high profile and high centre of gravity. This increases fuel costs and loading on the tractor used to pull the trailer. Fourth, it has been found that the concentrate loaded into the container tends to bind with the steel walls of the concentrate pot. When unloading the concentrate from the pot, the concentrate may stick in the pot and increase the difficulty of the unloading operation. In order to reduce this binding between the concentrate and the steel walls of the concentrate pots, plastic inserts may be used. However, adding the plastic to the concentrate pot is an inefficient additional operation in loading the pot and the handling of the plastic inserts is also troublesome during the emptying of the concentrate pot.